Winter's Fate
by aireborne
Summary: Jack Frost had always been an outsider, and now that he is a Guardian doesn't mean he feels any different. But when confronted with a threat he can't face alone, he ventures on without the help from his fellow Guardians, and this could be a fatal mistake. Jack feels more lost than ever, can the other Guardians find him in time, or will they allow Pitch to take his hold once more?
1. Chapter 1

welcome to my newest adventure! i know the first chapter is a little short, but i just want to get a feel for the kind of audience i will attract so i can better shape my story around to fit what you want! please leave reviews and suggestions so we can all find out where this story takes us.

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The day was warm and a cool breeze ruffled his fur. The sun shined down through the trees, casting shadows that swayed with the branches in the wind. Small tree saplings dotted the forest floor, and squirrels scurried along, collecting nuts. Birds, hidden somewhere above chirped their happy song to one another, but the calm of the forest did not seem to sway Bunnnymund. Tuned out to his surroundings, only one thing was going through his mind, _"it's all my fault, my fault…"_

His ears stood on alert, twitching in the direction of every twig snapping, every leaf crunching. He crouched low, his boomerang in hand, ready for attack, but nothing came at him. The ambush he was anticipating was nowhere to be seen. He continued on, heading to a location only ever once mentioned to him by the winter spirit.

He grew more and more anxious as he closed in on his destination. When it finally came into view, he stopped, searching for some trap he could spring by coming any closer. But there it laid the broken bed frame that sat above a tunnel into the ground, the only tunnel he had never been inside of before, utterly and entirely unguarded. Well, guess he had nothing more to lose.

Cautiously, he moved over to the bed frame, scrunching his nose in disgust at the smell of the rotting, molding wood. He nudged it with his foot, and found it to be surprisingly sturdy for something so rotted. Taking a deep breath, he sheathed his boomerangs, closed his eyes-

And an earsplitting scream of pain and sorrow shattered through the woods, swelling into his ears and piercing his heart.

"JACK!"

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hope you enjoyed! please review!


	2. Chapter 2

now presenting: chapter 2! hope you enjoy, i'm loving the feedback im getting, keep reviewing!

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Although it was still a few weeks from spring, the people in the small town were enjoying warm weather after a brutal winter. The children played ball in the streets, their bare feet pounding against the asphalt still warm. In the distance he could smell someone starting up a grill, probably about to break into the supply of hot dogs and hamburgers.

Normally when the weather got this warm out, Jack Frost would start his trek to the other side of the planet and end their summer. However, he was finding it harder and harder to move out, or do much of anything actually.

At this particular moment he was perched in some tree, its leaves already budding. Dangling his feet, he leaned back against the tree and closed his eyes. A warm breeze danced across his brow, but sent shivers down his spine. His white hair was plastered to his forehead with sweat and dark shadows protruded from underneath his eyes and cheek bones. The spark in his ice blue eyes was gone, and replaced with other feelings, and darker ideas.

Guardians don't get sick or die, but they can have nightmares. Jack had been plagued with them for a few months now, but the lack of sleep had only just started to take its toll. He hadn't told the others, he didn't see a reason to. He had been on his own for so long, fending for himself that he didn't see the Guardians as friends quite yet, just acquaintances really. And besides, North and Bunnymund would just laugh at his concern, Tooth would dismiss it without a second thought, and Sandy was too busy to even notice him. He was used to being on his own, and a little problem like nightmares was nothing to bother the all-important Guardians with.

On a nearby branch birds chirped, and the shouts of children could be heard below, but these disturbances are not what kept Jack from falling asleep. It wasn't that he couldn't sleep, but that he didn't _want_ too. The nightmares were unrelenting; sleep never came to Jack without them. As he closed his eyes and began to slip into the darkness, feelings of dread and despair would creep in around the edges of his mind. A mind numbing chill would take hold of his bones, making him shiver as sweat dusted his brow and made him colder. Flashes of pain and sorrow danced beneath his eye lids, and he felt as though a sack of rocks sat at the bottom of his stomach, like the feeling you get at the top of a rollercoaster, just about to go over the edge but you can't quite see the peak yet. He would toss and turn, cry out in pain, and when he woke he felt more alone than ever, there was no one there to hold him, tell him he was going to be okay, that it was all just a dream, because it wasn't.

He dreamt of never being seen as a true Guardian, just a tool the others needed to defeat Pitch. Now that he was destroyed, the others didn't pay any mind to Jack, they melted seamlessly back into their lives and duties, forgetting about the winter spirit.

He dreamt that although a few kids had believed in him before when they needed it most, that he would be forgotten. Eventually even Jamie would grow up, and he would be nothing more than a childhood memory. After all, no one else seemed to take notice to him after those fateful events.

He dreamt of a day when he was not only forgotten by the Guardians and the children, but also by the Man in the Moon. Only once did he ever talk to him, and he only told him his name, nothing more. When Jack cried out at night, trying to find out who he was, and why he was here, he would look into the face of the moon and beg for answers, yet nothing came to him. Eventually the Man in the Moon talked to the others, and made him a Guardian, but only as a last resort in defeating Pitch. Jack was forgotten by everyone else, why would the Man in the Moon be any different?

With a sigh Jack opened his eyes and looked down at the early spring he allowed to take hold on the town. He could surprise the children with a snow day, but what for? They still wouldn't believe in him, wouldn't thank him for working all night to bring them this joy and happiness.

He stood up on his perch and stretched his arms, yawning loud and wide. Grabbing his staff he dropped out of the tree and willed the wind to catch his fall. He set down on a rock next to his pond, setting his staff down beside him. As the sun began to set he gave into his exhaustion, allowing sleep to take over. He allowed the darkness to consume him, and the nightmares take hold, dark dreamsand swirling all around.

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thanks for reading! also, thanks to all of you who are reviewing. i promise to thank some of you by name next chapter because your support is what keeps me writing. please keep reviewing!

also, check out some of my other stories, especially Without the Snow. that one is by far my favorite piece, and even if you don't like this story so much you may really enjoy that one.


	3. Chapter 3

_He was falling, falling into the never-ending darkness. The cold pressed in, filled his lungs with icy shards that threatening to burst from inside his body. He strained to see through the murky darkness. He opened his mouth to call out, but it filled with tar and muck, it slid down his throat and like an anchor in his stomach it pulled him down. As he sank, struggling against the bonds that held him there, and just before the darkness took hold, he heard someone laugh._

He woke with a start, his chest rising and falling rapidly as he tried to catch his breath. He closed his eyes, and tried to calm himself, focusing in on his breathing to steady himself.

In and out, in and out.

His heart pounded against his chest, ready to burst out. Sweat plastered his brow and his hands shook as they searched for the familiar warped wood of his staff.

In and out, in and out.

Eventually, when his breathing calmed and his heart steadied, he opened his eyes. Squinting against the sun, he stood up and stretched. Another warm day was there in greeting. The wind whistled past, making ripples in the long grass that surrounded his pond. A frog poised on a nearby rock let out a croak and a butterfly danced among the flowers now in bloom. Jack sighed, this was such an early spring, and surely the others would have to take notice of his absence. Unless, of course, they were too consumed with their own responsibilities to notice Jack's disappearance.

Jack toyed with the idea of going to Sandy about his dreams. They had only been getting worse recently, and if anyone could help it would be the Sandman. But Sandy would probably just chastise him for interrupting his work; after all, he did have millions of childrens' dreams to tend to.

He pushed the idea aside. He could deal with the nightmares more than he could deal with the disapproving stares from the other Guardians. He had cared for himself for so long before; he didn't need their help just for some silly nightmares. With Pitch destroyed, the nightmares couldn't be his doing anyway. The Guardians would laugh at his concern, they're just nightmares, and how much harm could they do?

"Plenty of harm, if placed in the right situation."

Jack spun around, searching for the source of the voice.

"Who's there," he said tentatively, unsure if he was just hallucinating from his lack of sleep or if he was in real danger.

"Oh I've always been here, Jack. Just took you a little longer to notice me than I anticipated."

"Who are you? Where are you?!" Jack's heart started pounding against his chest again; the sound of blood rushing through his ears filled his head.

"You know the answer to that, Jack," the voice was growing louder, and an unmistakable cackle echoed in the woods. Jack knew who this was; he could never forget that voice.

"Pitch! Where are you?" he shouted out, unsure of where the bogeyman may be hiding. All the shadows of the forest seemed to close in; anyone could be concealing the threat.

Then a whisper came out of the darkness, it wasn't hiding in the woods, but instead seemed to be inside of Jack. It chilled him to the bone and sent shivers down his spine. "I'm right here."

The sky went black and the shadows condensed into matter. It all pressed in on him, threatened to crush him. Jack collapsed to his knees, struggling to catch his breath.

In and out, in and-

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dun dun dunnnnn! hope you enjoyed it, i hope to get the next chapter up tomorrow, maybe even sooner.

special thanks to AyameKitsune, for leaving an awesome comment!

please keep reviewing!


	4. Chapter 4

The shadows were condensing into matter, a tangible substance that threatened to choke Jack. The wind that was normally under the winter spirit's command spun in wild cyclones, knocking him to the ground. His staff was knocked away, out of reach, and Jack scrambled to reclaim it. Without his staff, he was powerless and defenseless against Pitch. Just as his hands were about to close around the familiar warped wood, an ominous shadow loomed above him.

"Hello Jack," his yellow eyes pierced into Jack's ice blue ones, his lips curling up in a wicked sneer. He stepped forward, deliberately placing his black boot over Jack's hand; a sickening crunch followed. "Nice to see you again."

Jack snapped his hand back, cradling the broken fingers against his chest. Pitch swooped down and picked up his staff, the sight of seeing it in his long gray fingers sent shivers down Jack's spine.

"What do you want from me, Pitch," Jack snarled

"I want insurance that you won't get in my way again." Pitch was slowly caressing the wood of the staff, pondering its power and capabilities.

"Tough," Jack snapped back. He had had it with Pitch, he had gone too far once, and Jack wasn't about to make the same mistakes again. As soon as he was given the chance, he could fly off and warn the others of Pitch's return.

Of course, Pitch knew what Jack was planning, and was prepared to stop him. In one fluid movement he snapped Jack's staff in two. Jack gasped; a mixture of surprise and sudden pain blossomed in his stomach.

"You will not stop me again," Pitch said, walking over to where the winter spirit lay, still gasping for a breath. Aiming for his stomach, Pitch kicked Jack until satisfied he had broken a couple of ribs, maybe even a punctured lung. "And there is nothing you can do to stop me." With each word, Pitch sent another kick, jamming his foot in Jack's ribs and once in his face, breaking his nose.

Jack curled in on himself, trying his best to protect himself from the bombardment. Eventually it stopped and Pitch bent down, his face next to Jack's.

"You got that?" he whispered, his breath warm on Jack's cheek.

Jack mumbled something incoherent in response. "I'm sorry, Jack. I couldn't quite hear that."

Jack turned his head, looked directly in the face of Pitch, and spit blood on his face.

Pitch's face screwed up in a mixture of surprise and disgust, then anger. One more kick aimed at Jack's head and Jack was sent into darkness.

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hope you enjoyed! the next chapter should be longer, but if it's not up today it probably won't be until at least thursday.

please keep reviewing!


	5. Chapter 5

This was a different darkness then the kind that plagued Jack's dreams. It was foreign and more evil somehow. It left him breathless and chilled him to the bone, him, the winter spirit, was shivering, teeth chattering, goose-bumps up and down his arms.

He was lying on something cold but soft, and it seemed to cradle him in its embrace. Hesitantly, Jack opened his eyes, wary of what could be waiting for him. Waiting for his eyes to adjust to the sudden sunlight, Jack was surprised to find he was still at his pond, right where he had faced Pitch.

Pitch.

He jumped up, fervently searching the snow for his staff and keeping another eye out for where Pitch could be, possibly preparing for another attack. Eventually he discovered his staff buried beneath a fallen snow drift, unharmed from the night before even though he could still remember the pain he felt when Pitch snapped it in two.

Come to think of it, he didn't seem to be suffering from any of the other injuries Pitch had inflicted on him the night before. Or was it the night before? Jack realized that he had no idea how long he had been knocked out either, there was no way to tell.

His injuries healed, his staff in one piece, but his head still a little fuzzy of all the other details, Jack was left in the dark as to what had really happened. Had it all been another nightmare? It couldn't have been, it was so real, the memory of pain still vivid in his mind. But how else could he explain everything else?

He glanced around the valley where his pond was situated between the cloud capped mountains that stretched on in both directions. The snow glistened underneath the sun's warm embrace; the steady sound of dripping icicles hanging from the trees steadied his breathing, calming his mind. He took a deep breath, closed his eyes-

And in the darkness he could still make out Pitch's smile, his yellow eyes piercing through the darkness, his laugh sending chills down his spine.

It certainly was _not_ a dream. He had to tell the others. Warn them of Pitch's return and the threat of his new found strength will bring.

With a mission and a goal, Jack set off, willing the winds to carry him away to alert the others. The air was crisp, but felt good against his fevered brow that was plastered with sweat. He extended his arms, gliding peacefully along the wind. It was all like the calm before the storm, the feeling of unrest, knowing something was coming, maybe already there.

To steady his nerves he decided to have a little fun with it. Performing graceful backflips and perfect spirals and corkscrews in the air, he enjoyed his last few moments of steadiness. He gave out whoops of laughter, a broad smile on his face for the last time in a long while.

And he could've sworn the wind laughed back at him, or maybe it wasn't the wind.

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yeah i know, these chapters are really short, but i don't have time to do much else, sorry! you can expect updates mostly on the weekends, i'm really busy with school right now.

also, i am thinking about combining this story with another i started writing, Summer's End, let me know what you think about that.

i'm loving all these reviews, thank you so much!


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